This invention relates to an apparatus for the formation of transverse grooves in a road, more particularly for the formation of rain drainage grooves on the edges of the road. Transversely-extending grooves, i.e., grooves which are not parallel to the longitudinal axis of the road, are known. Generally, such grooves have been employed to define what is known in this art as rumble strips. Rumble strips may be defined by either a series of raised strips, often integral with the road surface, or by a series of transversely extending and parallel depressions, the latter being formed, conventionally, by a circular saw blade cutting into the road surface. The walls or sides of such grooves are thus generally vertical. The effect of the rumble strips is to generate noise and vehicle vibration when the wheels of an automobile pass over them to thereby appraise the driver that the vehicle is either to be slowed down or that the vehicle is not in a proper lane or not in a proper portion of the road.
Prior apparatus for making a series of transverse, parallel grooves in an already formed road has suffered the drawback of not being capable of operation in a continuous manner. Namely, whatever element (such as a saw) that is employed to form each groove operates intermittently as regards its advance or motion along the road. Namely, the groove forming element is pushed down into the road surface, the groove is formed while the element is stationary vis-a-vis travel along the road, the element is then raised from the road surface and then is stepwise advanced or indexed along the road to thereby form the next adjacent groove at the next indexing or stepping location.